Kings to spend another $30M on Sacramento arena

SACRAMENTO – Tuesday night, the Sacramento City Council will review the final deal between the city and the Sacramento Kings to build a new arena at the site of the Downtown Plaza.

The term sheet, which doesn't vary drastically from the preliminary term sheet that was drafted last year, was released Monday afternoon.

"When you look at this plaza, it is truly a gift to the community from the Kings," Sacramento Assistant Manager John Dangberg said, while pointing out that the Kings have opted to invest an additional $30 million into the project, raising the total price to $447 million.

Kings' President Chris Granger said the organization wants to invest more into the plaza surrounding the arena, L Street and a state-of-the-art practice facility for players.

"From a plaza standpoint, we want this to be a great civic space," Granger said. "So we have to reduce the size of the arena and retail space a little bit."

However, reducing the size of the arena isn't cutting the number of seats or suites.

Aside from the total cost, another change is that the city isn't asking for a ticket surcharge to subsidize the cost of the arena. The Kings organization, though, will add a ticket surcharge for non-King events.

The city will also now own the land and the building, allowing for fixed lease payments.

The Kings will pay the city a minimum of $6.5 million per year for the first five years and eventually about $18 million in the 35th year.

Dangberg said that will make the bonds they're trying to sell more attractive.

"I've got to tell you, with this ownership group, we've put together a great partnership with the Kings that felt good from the beginning," he added.

The last big change is the value of the land the city is giving to the Kings. The eight parcels were estimated at $38 million. They've been re-appraised at $32 million.

The city says it's giving away less, but not contributing any more actual money.

"This arena that will set the standard in this country for what entertainment and sports complexes should look like," Dangberg said.

While the city council will be reviewing the new term sheet Tuesday night, it will not vote on the deal until May 13.

If approved, Granger said demolition of the Downtown Plaza mall can start the next day.

The expected final arena term sheet between the city of Sacramento and Sacramento Kings shows the Kings plan to pump another $30 million into the site for an enhanced plaza, facade and practice facility for players.
News10/KXTV